The cast and crew of Lampeter-Strasburg High School's production of "Mamma Mia!" is confident those who take a chance on seeing the show will be saying, "Thank you for the music."

"It's a fun, energetic show," said Mia LaFontaine, who will portray Donna. "It's a humorous show. There is a lot of comedy throughout with strong characters and a good love story at the end."

"Mamma Mia!" will be performed in Lampeter-Strasburg High School's Performing Arts Center, 1640 Book Road, Lancaster.

The show dates and times will be Thursday, Feb. 27, at 7 p.m.; Friday, Feb. 28, at 7 p.m.; and Saturday, March 1, at 2 p.m.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.zeffy.com/ticketing/mamma-mia-2025-spring-musical or at the door using cash or a card. Doors will open at 6 p.m. on Feb. 27 and 28 and at 1 p.m. on March 1.

Director Kevin Ditzler noted that "Mamma Mia!" is an ideal choice for this spring. "We assess the talent we feel we have and know we have the components needed to put on a strong musical," said Ditzler. "As we were looking down the line, we knew we had a lot of really strong female talent, and we have a lot of quirky male comedians. This show lends itself perfectly to being able to highlight the strong female talent and utilize the comic ability of the cast. We hadn't done anything vocally quite as contemporary with pop music in a while, so we thought this was a good opportunity. We try, over a four-year period, to give students different types of musicals. They hadn't touched upon something like this before, so we figured it was a good opportunity. And darn it, it's just fun."

In addition to Mia as Donna, the main cast is Amara Russell as Sophie, Audrey Weiand as Ali, Sigey Bett as Lisa, Luda Lozada as Nancy, Ciara Mecouch as Tanya, Ellie Rhinier as Rosie, Julian Ford as Sky, Micah Drouillard as Pepper, Xavier Thomas as Eddie, Gabe Bostdorf as Harry Bright, James Appelgrijn as Bill Austin, Trenton Breneman as Sam Carmichael, and Isaac Staley as Father Alexander.

"Mamma Mia!" takes place on the fictional Greek island of Kalokairi and is based on songs by the Swedish band ABBA.

Although ABBA hit the music scene in the 1970s, Ditzler said many of his students are familiar with the songs.

"(The students) probably showed even greater enthusiasm than we did when we were picking songs from our childhood," said Ditzler. "They know them as well from the success of the Broadway musical ( 'Mamma Mia!')."

Trenton enjoyed learning some of ABBA's lesser-known works. "I know the popular songs," Trenton said. "I didn't know all the less-popular songs, but they actually ended up being some of our favorites. They mean a lot more to the show. I think it's a really fun show, and people will know a lot of the songs we do."

Mia stated that her character plays a central role in the story. "Donna is a strong single mom who has raised her daughter for 20 years," she said. "She's just struggling to keep her business open. She meets her three past (boyfriends) and feels conflicted. She doesn't know how to deal with that and is still in love with one of them."

Mia believes the production will be especially meaningful to people who lived through the 1970s - when ABBA was formed - and also will appeal to everyone. "A lot of the choreography is from the (1970s), so I think it will be nostalgic for people," Mia said. "I think it's just a heartwarming story a lot of people can relate to in different ways. The cast has put so much into it. We just want to show what we can do."

Amara, a veteran of the stage in part because her parents, John and Darcy, work at Sight & Sound Theatre, will play Donna's daughter, who was born and raised on the island.

"She's a very headstrong, fun-loving young girl," Amara said. "She's about to get married to her fiance, Sky, and she's trying to figure out who her dad is."

Ditzler stated "Mamma Mia!" challenges his students. "It's vocally demanding," he said. "There are a lot of opportunities for not only the backup crew, but a lot of belting, so it's a musically challenging show for a lot of the students. Typically, in a show like this, one of the challenges is it never stops. There's no traditional blackout and time to change the set. Technically, it creates a bit of a difficult show as well. It just means it's a great opportunity to reconceive the way you look at a show and approach it differently. It's been a lot of fun in that way."